1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical transceiver, in particular, the invention relates to a mechanism of a pluggable optical transceiver to engage or disengage with rail of the host system.
2. Related Prior Art
A pluggable optical transceiver in one aspect thereof is used to be installed in a host system such as computer or optical HUB system, while according to another aspect, the pluggable transceiver receives an optical connector in an optical receptacle installed in the transceiver to optically couple the optical fiber in the connector with an optical device in the receptacle.
Such optical transceiver is set on the host system by, for example, engaging the latch lever provided in the sides of the transceiver with the keyhole formed in the rail on the host system. To engage or disengage the latch lever with the keyhole may insert the transceiver in the host system or release it from the system.
A conventional transceiver provides a latching mechanism shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, which has been disclosed in the United States patent application published as US20050286837A, to engage with and to release from the rail provided on the host system. FIGS. 4A and 4B omit the upper housing to explain the latching mechanism in the lower housing and only show the optical receptacle portion of the transceiver.
FIG. 4A shows a condition in a case that the optical transceiver 100 is set in the host system, where an end 101c of the actuator 101 engages with the keyhole 2a of the rail 2. The optical receptacle 16 of the transceiver 100 provides a grip 10, which surrounds the receptacle 16, to manipulate the grip 16 for releasing the engagement between the actuator 101 and the keyhole 2a. Pulling the grip 10 frontward, to the left side in FIG. 4A, the end 101c of the actuator 101 slides up the slope 10b to push the end 101c of the actuator 101 outward. Because the actuator 101 performs the seesaw motion by the pivot 101b as a center, the other end 101a of the actuator 101 may be pulled within the transceiver 100, which is shown in FIG. 4B.
Thus, the engagement between the end 101a of the actuator 101 and the keyhole 2a of the rail may be released and the transceiver 100 becomes free from the rail 2. Sliding the transceiver 100 on the rail 2 frontward after releasing the engagement between the end 101c and the keyhole 2a, which also disengages the electrical plug provided in the rear end of the transceiver 100 with the electrical connector on the host system, the transceiver 100 may be extracted from the host system.
An elastic member 102 such as leaf spring always applies an outward force to the other end 101a of the actuator 101, which not only pushes the other end 101c outward but also pulls the end 101c of the actuator inward. As a result, the end 101c of the actuator 101 is automatically set in the bottom of the slope 10b, that is, the transceiver 100 sets the grip 10 closest to the body of the transceiver 100 in a state free from the rail 2, which is the neutral position of the grip 10.
When an irregular external force F4 is applied to the transceiver 100, where the transceiver 100 in the end 101a of the actuator 101 engages with the rail 2, to extract from the rail 2 without manipulating the grip 10, the tip end 101a of the actuator 101 receives a moment F6 due to the reaction force F5, which operates so as to release the engagement with the rail 2 as shown in FIG. 5. This situation may appear when the rail 2 is relatively thick, that is, in a case the tip end of the actuator 101 abuts against the wall surface of the rail 2, not hooked by the rail in the case the rail is formed by a metal plate.